Mourning Lincoln

[L Verge]

I received my copy of Mourning Lincoln today. Authored by Martha Hodes, a history professor at New York University, it looks intriguing - and she certainly cites enough good sources in a special section at the back. She also has a sort of addendum in which she explains her method of approaching the subject and what she was trying to accomplish.

She drew inspiration for the subject based on her own memories as a child of the Kennedy assassination and public reaction as well as the more recent 9/11 event as a resident of New York City. I did find one statement interesting: she wanted first-hand information from the Lincoln era, but she did not want to rely on memoirs because they were generally written in later years and the memories contained in them were likely tainted by false memories, forgetfulness, and exaggerations as the years passed by.

We will have the book for sale at Surratt House - and I wish I had known about Ms. Hodes and her work in time to invite her to speak at this year's Surratt conference. Maybe next year...